The Ghosts of Christmas
by Azolean
Summary: How would you remember the men and women who died under your command on Christmas? What would you do if you had no family and nowhere to go on Christmas? What if you were home, but essentially a ghost to your loved ones on Christmas? Teyla, Ronon, Zalenka, and Col. Carter also included.
1. Ghosts of Christmas Past

**A/N:** Okay, so these three little stories started off as three unrelated pieces. However, somewhere along the way I decided to break my standard rule about Christmas fics. I generally shy away from them no matter what profile I'm using and no matter what fandom. Mainly because everyone and their great grandmother has a Christmas fic for their favorite characters in their favorite fandom.

And, since I was going to break one of my own rules, I was going to go all the way. lol So now you all get three for the price of one! Yay!

Enjoy!

* * *

 **Ghosts of Christmas Past**

 _Just three days?_ Colonel Sheppard wondered to himself, reading the request from Major Lorne.

It didn't take a Heightmeyer to know something was up with the Major. The man had been gone for over two months after his mother passed away earlier in the year. It's not like Lorne hadn't earned the leave time seven times over in his career, and he still had leave time available to go home for Christmas. So why was he only taking three days off, and staying in Atlantis, for that matter? Shaking this off, Sheppard approved the request and moved on to the rest of his paperwork. He was going to have to have a talk with the man, soon.

~o~o~o~

Somewhere along the way with everything else going on, Sheppard forgot about the Major's request. It wasn't until the usual round of personnel were arranged in the gate room to head home a week before Christmas that Sheppard remembered. And that was only because he didn't see Lorne in the crowd below during the weekly dial-in that would send all of them on their way; only to return weeks later with the Daedalus. Thinking again he needed to corner his SiC, he turned back to his usual duties.

~o~o~o~

Of course, things never turn out the way they plan. So, Colonel Sheppard, being the busy man he is, totally forgot about catching the Major to see if things were okay. And then things finally slowed down enough to think. He had a vague recollection of Lorne reminding him that he wasn't going to have his radio and would be out of touch for the next three days. But, as ever, he'd be back in the day after Christmas.

By this point Sheppard was pretty certain the man was either in a funk, or was just going out of his way to avoid the usual city-wide festivities. Whatever was going on in Lorne's head, it was starting to irk him. One thing Sheppard prided himself on was knowing his men. And the Major's unusual behavior meant there was something bothering the man that he didn't know about. And that could lead to mistakes. Mistakes cost lives.

Given the fact that it was two days before Christmas, Lorne was officially off, and Sheppard really didn't have a reason to bother the man on his days off, he made yet another mental note to see how his friend behaved after the holidays. Lorne had always been dependable, Sheppard didn't see any reason this would change now. So, hopefully his three days off would give him time to deal with whatever it was and get back to work.

~o~o~o~

"What?" Sheppard heard the confusion clear in the tech's voice as he was waiting for a radio check in from one of his off world teams.

"What's up, Chuck?"

"Not sure, sir. Just…No, there it is again."

"What?" Sheppard asked, coming around to view the man's laptop.

"Sorry, Colonel. Doctor McKay wanted us to do some adjustment to the city-wide sensors while he was gone. So, I'm doing just that when I caught something way out on the Northwest Pier. And I mean _way_ out there."

"Like what?" Sheppard asked, leaning down to see the laptop screen for himself.

Instead of answering, Chuck just pointed to the flashing dot and label. Sheppard frowned.

"Thanks. I'll look into it in a few. Just keep an eye on it and let me know if anything changes."

"Sure thing."

With that the man went back to work and Sheppard went back to waiting.

~o~o~o~

An hour later Colonel Sheppard found himself approaching the end of the Northwest Pier. As in the very edge of the city, end. There he found Major Lorne sitting with his feet dangling off the side of the city with a half-empty liter sized bottle of tequila sitting next to him. Being that he was off, the Major had dressed down to jeans, a black t-shirt, and, for once, his hair wasn't picture perfect. For a moment Sheppard just watched as Lorne sat hunched, but not leaning too far over the side. Not sure how drunk the man might be, he considered maybe talking him back further. But, then he caught sight of the paper in Lorne's hand. Even from this distance, some twenty feet away, he could make out the Major's own handwriting.

 _So that's what this is about,_ Sheppard thought, not really surprised.

Well, there was only one way to find out what condition the man was in. Somewhat concerned that his friend hadn't yet noticed his presence, Sheppard radioed the command center that he was taking off his radio for a few while he was on break, and then slipped it into his pocket.

Stepping closer he asked, "So, how many are on the list?"

"Fuck!" Lorne let slip when he started in surprise.

 _Well that was one question answered,_ Sheppard thought to himself. Obviously Lorne was fairly buzzed, but not staggering drunk or anything. Because the man was almost never startled, and typically had enough control of his vocabulary not to use such language; at least not in public.

Turning around to look up at the Colonel, Lorne gave him a nasty look. "Didn't anyone ever tell you sneaking up on people is a bad idea?"

Glad to see that the only thing in the Major's hands was that paper and not what…well, to be honest, what he'd feared, Sheppard grinned. "I wasn't sneaking. You just weren't paying attention."

Still scowling Lorne looked him up and down taking in the uniform but no radio. "I'm off duty, so this better not be an official visit."

Making a point of eyeing the man and the bottle of liquor next to him, Sheppard asked, "Does it need to be an official visit?"

"No."

"Then it's not," Sheppard said, happily. "Relax, Evan."

For a moment it looked like the man was going to tell Sheppard to bugger off, but seemed to change his mind. Seeing the expression relax as Lorne turned his attention to the paper in his hands, Sheppard decided to make himself comfortable. He took a seat right next to him, he took in the view.

"Makes you feel pretty small, doesn't it?" Evan commented.

"No more so than flying at forty-five thousand feet in a Raptor. But that still doesn't answer my question. How many are on your list, now?" Wanting to keep it casual, John leaned back on his elbows while waiting for his answer.

Evan scowled as he folded the paper. For a moment John didn't think he was going to answer. "Twenty-three. You act like you knew about it."

"I do. A lot of people have lists." And it was true. Almost anyone who wound up in a leadership role in the military had a list of people who had died under their command. Some, even kept them in a journal.

"You too?"

"Nope. But that's not why I'm here. Why are _you_ here instead of at your sister's?"

Evan shrugged, picking up the tequila and taking a swig. "We had a bit of a falling out after Mom passed. We agreed it would be best if we spend a little time apart."

John kept his silence. He knew if Evan wanted to talk, he would. For a few minutes the two sat in comfortable silence.

"She wants me to leave the Air Force," Evan finally confessed.

John nodded, keeping his eyes focused on the water far, far out and below them. "That still doesn't explain why you're out here with the list."

"Persistent as ever," Evan chuckles, leaning back. "Look, John, I'll admit, I wonder about their families sometimes. But that's pretty typical for this time of year for anyone."

Not for the first time Colonel Sheppard had to remind himself that Major Lorne had not set out to be career military. His first love had been geology. He'd never found out why Evan had given up on that career to join the Air Force. And, it was probably only because of the Stargate Program that the man was even still in the Air Force. He knew they shared the same sense that this city was their home, now. Almost anyone with the natural ATA gene strong enough to sense it felt that way. But, even so, maybe it was time to convince Evan that a career change might be in order; especially if things were finally getting to him. Better to quit while he's ahead, and still had a head.

Not liking the timing, not liking the circumstances, not liking to have this conversation at all but still needing to know where he was at with his friend, John finally asked, "So, what is it? Survivor's guilt? Depression?"

His surprise was complete when Evan laughed softly. "Nope."

John knew the look he gave screamed _"bullshit",_ but kept his mouth shut when Evan turned to look at him. The expression must have triggered something, though, because Evan laughed even more. Finally Evan decided to put the man out of his misery.

"Think about it, John. In our line of work, we can sit here and confidently say that somewhere out there in another universe, all twenty-three of them are sitting at home with their families celebrating Christmas, right now. So, no, I assure you, that's not what this is about."

John grunted, still not buying it. "Look, Evan, you're the most solid, easy-going, well-adjusted, some would say unflappable, guy I've probably ever served with. So what's up with all this, then?" he asked, motioning to the tequila, their distance from the city, and the list.

"Actually, this is a yearly ritual for me. This is just the first time I've been in the city on December Twenty-Third. It's not depression or survivor's guilt or anything like that. I like to remember. Their families are sitting there now, thinking about them on the holiday. The only thing they know is that their son, sister, brother, mother, whomever, is dead. They don't know how, and they don't know why they're dead. They don't know that their family member died doing something they loved, for something they believed in, so others could live."

Evan paused, his gaze still on the water far below.

"And you feel it's your fault?" Sheppard finally prompted.

"Not at all," Evan said, shaking his head.

Considering this, John shook his head confused. "Then why only twenty-three? Why not all the others?"

Evan smiled sadly, glancing at John for a moment. "Because these are the ones that gave my family the best Christmas gift ever. I'm still here to spend Christmas with my mother, sister, and nephews thanks to them."

Again John nods, taking this in. To him, it seemed as good of a way to deal with it as anyone. As ever, Evan had proved himself a very mentally and emotionally healthy person. John almost envied him at times.

"So, do you have any plans to leave the Air Force?"

"No, hence the reason I'm here instead of in front of a warm, cozy fire with my nephews building Lego cities."

For a few minutes they sat in silence, just enjoying the view and the quiet. Glancing at his watch, John heaved a sigh, knowing he needed to wrap this up and get back to work before the city imploded or something.

"You coming to the Christmas party in the mess hall?"

Evan shrugged. "Not sure. I was actually thinking of catching up on some sleep tomorrow. Guess I'll see how I feel on Christmas day."

Sitting up, John pulled a piece of paper out of his breast pocket. "Well, just in case you don't show up, I'll give you this now."

Curious, Evan read the paper. John couldn't help the grin as he watched the man's face light up. "It's not official for a couple more months, yet; but, in light of our conversation, I thought you should know. Merry Christmas, Lieutenant Colonel Lorne."

Evan watched him stand up with no small amount of suspicion. "And if I'd said otherwise?"

John smiled jauntily as he fished his radio out of his pocket. "Then I would have had to use it as an incentive instead of Christmas gift. I can't have the best man I've ever served with quitting on me, now can I?"

He laughed again as an idea struck his liquored-up mind. "No, you're more likely to be an ass about it than to sweet talk me."

Chuckling, John agreed. "You're probably right. But that's not something we're going to have to worry about now. I've got to head back. Don't get too shitfaced out here. I'm not going for a swim, and it's a long way back to the Jumper Bay."

Lorne laughed. "Don't worry. I've been nursing this bottle for months. Merry Christmas, John."

"Merry Christmas, Evan."


	2. Ghosts of Christmas Present

**Ghosts of Christmas Present**

Carson nearly choked on his coffee and had to cough several times to recover. He'd been sitting in the mess hall on the Daedalus when he'd overheard a conversation at a neighboring table. Ignoring the concerned looks he was getting from said table, he checked his tablet. Recovering from the shock, he slumped.

"Oh bugger," he mumbled, cursing himself silently.

He'd been on the Daedalus for two weeks already. In a few more days they would be back to Earth. There he was going to pick up some supplies and head back out. He knew the Daedalus was scheduled for some upgrades so he was going to be there at least a week, if not longer, before starting the eighteen day trip back to the Pegasus Galaxy. With Atlantis still parked in San Francisco Bay nearly a year later as they worked out the power requirements and alternatives for getting the city back to the Pegasus Galaxy, he'd planned on staying there. His whole two month or so trip back to the Milky Way Galaxy had been planned out perfectly.

But now he realized there was just one problem.

 _The bloody holiday season,_ he thought to himself.

Abandoning the rest of his meal, Beckett took off for his quarters considering this problem. He actually counted himself rather fortunate to have overheard the conversation about someone else's holiday plans. If he hadn't, he probably would have dropped in a few days before Christmas feeling like an unexpected—and possibly unwelcome—guest. He had wanted to keep his brief return a surprise, but not _that_ kind of a surprise.

Ever since finding out that he was just a clone of the real Carson Beckett, he fancied himself rather lucky to have avoided the awkward invitations from friends who felt sorry for him. After all, he'd essentially lost his entire family on Earth when the real Beckett died. Though his real friends never once indicated he was less than anything other than the real Doctor Carson Beckett to all of them, he still knew their way of thinking. Oh they were good friends, and every one of them cared about him as much as he did them. But they had no idea what those awkward, pity-induced invitations would do to him.

Caught somewhere between pissed off and depressed, Carson reached his tiny quarters on the Daedalus and flopped onto the bunk to consider this problem. Realistically, the only other option he had was staying at the SGC. And then his friends on Atlantis would inevitably find out and be all the more worried about him. Then, of course, there was the fact that the SGC hadn't felt the same to him since Doctor Frasier had been killed.

Still mulling over the problem, he eventually drifted off to sleep.

~o~o~o~

Carson still hadn't come up with a real solution by the time the Daedalus locked its orbit around Earth. Giving up, he figured he'd just have to be as grumpy and anti-social as possible, and maybe they would all just leave him alone. His mind set, he beamed down to the gate room on Atlantis.

Grinning ear to ear Colonel Sheppard hopped down the stairs two at a time. "It's good to see you, Carson," he greeted happily. "Welcome back."

Beckett couldn't help himself. Sheppard's smile was infectious. "Thank you, Colonel. It's good to be back, however briefly."

"Colonel Caldwell didn't tell us you were coming. I would have told the others."

"I had wanted to keep it a surprise," Carson admitted, a bit sheepishly. "But I hadn't really considered the timing."

"You forgot it was Christmas?"

"Aye."

Sheppard laughed at Carson's expression. "Doesn't matter. You're here now. I'll just radio—"

"I'd really rather you didn't. I'm pretty certain I can guess what everyone's up to. I won't be here long. And anyone still here can see me before they leave," Beckett cut in.

Something in the Doctor's expression must have translated, because Sheppard got over his shock and gave a half-hearted grin. "Sure thing, Doc. Come on, your old quarters are still intact."

"Well, that's a plus," he commented with a chuckle.

With the city now being parked on Earth, and only a week until Christmas, it looked like it had been attacked by a horde of decorating elves from Santa's workshop. Every used corridor, the mess hall, most of the labs, and every public area of the city was lit up, bedecked, or glittering. It was quite a wonder to see. As Sheppard carried one of Beckett's bags, he caught him up on the goings on in the city.

It seemed even Woolsey had found somewhere else to be this holiday season; which did nothing to improve Carson's mood. Sheppard was in charge of the city until after the New Year, but he didn't really do much for the holidays anyway; so it worked out. Colonel Lorne had gone to his sister's for the week. McKay, planning to finally propose to Keller, had kidnapped the doctor away from her work to stay at his sister's. Ronon had surprised them all by staying on with Atlantis and had been dating Amelia Banks for about a year, now. He had gone off to spend Christmas with her family after gaining clearance from the SGC. If there had ever been a meeting with potential in-laws Sheppard wanted to see, that would have been the one.

Somewhere along the way Beckett eventually tuned out most of what Sheppard was saying. He paid attention just enough to know there weren't any of those awkward invitations he'd been expecting. But, since the Colonel didn't have a family of his own, he wasn't really expecting one out of him. Nonetheless, he was greatly relieved to have made it to his quarters without running into anyone else he had known personally. With a promise to catch up with the Colonel later over a meal, he closed the door and threw down his bags. Sighing heavily, he set his mind to all that he had to accomplish while here and pushed out the rest.

~o~o~o~

"The man's been a damned ghost since he got back," Colonel Sheppard grumbled, pushing away his tray of food in disgust.

"Give him a break, Colonel," Colonel Wotton said. "The man is finally back on Earth for Christmas, and he can't even go home to see his family."

"You think _I_ don't know that?" Sheppard sniped. "In any case, I can't get him out of his room unless it involves a quick jump to the SGC and back."

"So don't, sir," Lieutenant Lockwood said, shrugging. "I mean, I don't know the guy personally, mind you. But Christmas isn't for everyone. And, by the sounds of it, I wouldn't want to celebrate were I in his shoes."

"He's not even answering his emails, at this point," Sheppard added. "And I know of at least three people here in the city who have had to slip Christmas cards under his door, since he won't answer."

"So, what can you do about it, sir? Drag him out of his quarters kicking and screaming?" Wotton asked.

Sheppard's frown was still present, but he kept his peace. There was no mistaking his irritation, however, as they finished their meal in silence. Christmas was two days away and it seemed Carson was just going to hole up alone in his room. And there wasn't a damn thing anyone could do about it.

~o~o~o~

With their backs to the door, none of the three at the table noticed Beckett turn and head back the way he'd come. Suddenly he wasn't so hungry anymore.

~o~o~o~

The next day Carson found himself stretched out on his bed indulging in one of the few, rare luxuries in his life anymore. There was nothing like a good cup of hot chocolate and a good book. The luxury of a whole two days to do nothing but read was, in itself, a wonder. Out in the Pegasus Galaxy he didn't get too many opportunities to read just for the fun of reading. And his tablet could only hold so much. Besides, there was a certain comfort in holding an actual book for a change that wasn't a medical text from some underdeveloped world. If he was going to have to spend Christmas Eve avoiding everyone he knew, then this was the best way to do it.

He must have dozed off at some point, because the next thing he knew he was startled awake by the door chimes. Somewhere in the fog of sleep he was trying to shake off, he realized it had been going off for some time.

"Doc, open up! Or I'll have to override the door lock, and I'm not in the mood to surprise you in your skivvies," Colonel Sheppard shouted.

Still more asleep than awake, Carson stumbled to the door and opened it. A very thoroughly pissed off Sheppard greeted him.

"Good, you're dressed. Are you sober?"

Carson nodded.

"Good. Throw on some shoes. We've got a situation and Jennifer can't get back with Rodney until tomorrow."

"What's going on?" Beckett finally managed to ask, the Colonel's words verbally slapping him awake.

"Apparently it's classified important enough that they had to tell us in person. They're going to brief us when we get there. Come on."

Carson was still hopping into his other shoe when Sheppard turned and started marching down the hall. He couldn't imagine what would set the man off badly enough that he lost even his snarky sense of humor. Whatever it was must be bad if the Colonel was in such a vile mood. Jogging to catch up, Beckett just barely managed to stay two steps behind the man without getting winded. Not for the first time he thanked his extensive hiking over the last couple of years for his good stamina.

Beckett was already running through the possibilities and considering the supplies likely to be in the Atlantis infirmary. He was so preoccupied with his thoughts he failed to notice they were headed for the mess hall until they were just a couple of turns away. Finally catching up mentally, Beckett stopped in his tracks; already hearing the hum of many conversations from up ahead in the mess hall. By the sounds of it, the place was packed.

"There isn't a 'situation', is there, Colonel?" he asked, darkly.

"Busted," Sheppard said, turning around with a huge grin. "Well, I had to get you out of your quarters, somehow."

"Ugh," Carson grunted, turning around to head back to his quarters. "While I do appreciate the effort—"

"Stop right there, Doc," Sheppard called, smile gone.

Turning back around, Carson started, "Colonel—"

"Do you really believe that you're the only person in this whole city with no family or nowhere to go on Christmas?" Sheppard asked, clearly irritated now.

"Of course not."

"Oh, so it must be because you're the only dead man in the whole city."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Then what is it, Carson? Because no one here believes for one second you're happy holed up in your quarters ignoring emails, invitations, and even cards from your friends. And if you think this was all for you, you really need to get over yourself. This is a party we have every year. You've just never been around to see it. So, since you're here, why don't you come and enjoy the party instead of sitting in your room throwing a pity party?"

Carson was a loss for words. Realizing that that was exactly what he'd been thinking for most of this time, he now felt about an inch tall. Of course he knew there were others that didn't or couldn't go home for the holidays. But aside from the awkward pity invitations to join the others in their festivities, it hadn't really occurred to him that there might be something going on for everyone else. And the last thing he wanted was someone to go through extra trouble just to accommodate him out of pity.

"Oh, now that's just not fair, sir," Colonel Lorne called out, coming around the corner from the direction of the mess hall.

"What? I beat you to it?" Sheppard asked with a smirk, turning around.

"Yeah, we just drew straws to see who got to get him. My team won. We were going to send a team to kidnap him if he didn't come along nicely," Lorne said with an impish grin. "You stole our fun."

"Cause I'm sure Cayton would have just loved tying him up," Sheppard commented with a mischievous grin.

"No way, sir," Shingleton spoke up. "I was just going to stun him."

"Ye can't be serious!" Carson blurted.

"Oh yes we are," Keane replied. "I've got to leave in an hour. I wasn't about to miss getting a chance to finally see you again, Doc." With that he came over and hugged the dazed man. "That's from my wife, by the way."

"Oh, look! It's the ghost of Christmas present!" Rodney spoke up as he and Jennifer came around the corner. "I was wondering why you weren't in your room."

"I told him not to override the door lock," Jennifer added, smacking him on the arm.

"Yeah, well, it was that or send Ronon in to just carry him back here," Rodney said.

"Ronon? He's here, too? I thought he was with Amelia's family," Carson said, surprised.

"I was," Ronon said, coming up behind Lorne's team. "We came back to see you."

Now he was getting irritated all over again. "So you all cancelled your plans to come back here just to see me?"

"Her parents don't like me," Ronon said, throwing an arm around Amelia's shoulders.

"My sister's pregnant and not taking it very well. The stress of house guests was getting to her," Rodney explained.

Turning to Lorne, Carson said, "What's your story?"

Lorne's eyebrows shot up. "No story, Doc. My sister is right here in San Francisco. I can go spend Christmas with her and the nephews tomorrow."

Knowing he was defeated, and not entirely convinced, Beckett turned to Colonel Sheppard. "Any more surprises I should be aware of?"

"Nope. Just three rules. One, no gift-giving at this party. That can be done between individuals later, and it prevents anyone from feeling awkward. Two, no getting so drunk you can't make it back to your quarters. Oh, and passing out drunk means you're fair game for any humiliating prank anyone else comes up with. Three, no party poopers. This is for everyone to cut loose, have fun, and celebrate the holidays in their own way with friends of other religions and beliefs. Not for someone to sit around whining. Got it, Doc?"

"Aye, I think I can handle that," Carson replied with a grin.

"Good, enough standing around out here. I'm starving," Rodney said, taking his friend by the arm and dragging him along with the rest of the party around the corner and into the mess hall.

The cheer that went up when the crowd caught sight of Carson could be heard half way across the city. Somewhere on a table at the back of the mess hall someone queued up the holiday music, both modern and traditional, and the party officially began. With the sheer amount of alcohol going around, it wasn't long before Carson, his friends, and most of the party goers were pretty well snockered.

All in all, Carson had to admit, it was a pretty damn good Christmas.


	3. Ghosts of Christmas Future

**Ghosts of Christmas Future**

 _Wednesday, December 25_ _th_ _, 2013_

 _Atlantis, M3G-631, Pegasus Galaxy_

.

00:43, the clock on the desk told him.

Christmas Day and Lieutenant Colonel Lorne found himself sitting in the office that had once been occupied by Doctor Weir, Colonel Carter, Mr. Woolsey, and—most recently—Colonel Sheppard. Considering the ghosts that haunted Atlantis since its return to the Pegasus Galaxy nearly two years ago, Lorne wasn't surprised to feel the weight in this room. He'd only been officially occupying this chair for about eight weeks. He was starting to think Colonel Sheppard's luck had finally run out. He and his team had been declared MIA the day before Halloween.

Rubbing his throbbing temples, Lorne tried to focus on the tablet in front of him. God how he wished he could be in bed with his wife right now. And he instantly felt bad for even thinking something so selfish. At least he knew his spouse was safe and whole today of all days. Jennifer McKay and baby Elizabeth, Kanaan and Torren, Amelia Dex and baby Tyre were probably all going to wake up this morning missing their loved ones; knowing they would likely never see them again.

Frustrated, Lorne slammed a hand on his desk. This was getting him nowhere. Turning off his tablet he stormed out of the office to the balcony. Letting the cool air wash over him easing some of his headache, he took a few deep breaths.

"If you're not dead, John, I'm going to kill you myself," he finally growled to the night.

 _"Fancy that," John's ghost answered back, totally unheard by Colonel Lorne. "The man does have a breaking point. Never thought it would be that easy. I told you the paperwork was a killer."_

 _"You are such an ass, Sheppard," Rodney's ghost answered back._

 _"Would both of you shut up and come on," Ronon growled, standing in the door to the office._

 _"Hey! We were here, first!" McKay called back._

 _Instead of answering, John caught sight of the look on Evan's face and had to agree with Ronon. They were invading the man's privacy. But Teyla saved him from having to shove McKay toward the door. She gracefully grabbed the scientist by the collar and dragged him through the closed door. The last glimpse Sheppard had of Evan's face was something just shy of outright grief._

~o~o~o~

 _Wednesday, October 30_ _th_ _, 2013_

 _M9B-309, Pegasus Galaxy_

.

"Wait, wait, wait," Sheppard said, cutting off McKay's string of techno babble. "Let me get this straight. You activated something in that building that put us out of phase with the rest of the universe, but _in phase_ with that planet over there?"

"Um, yeah."

"So we spent an entire afternoon getting to know one of the few technologically advanced civilizations in the Pegasus Galaxy _not_ because they were brought back into phase with our universe, but because we were brought _out of phase_ into _their frequency_ of our universe."

"Well, that's a bit over simplified, but—"

"Rodney!" Sheppard shouted, his patience gone.

"Yes! Yes! That's basically what happened!" McKay practically squealed as Ronon's hand came down on his shoulder roughly.

"And now, thanks to the harmonics of the Jumper's signals to the gate, we can dial Atlantis, but they can't hear our radios."

"Yes."

"So we're out of phase and you can't even physically interact with the equipment that made us this way?" Teyla asked, her concern clear in her eyes.

"Yes."

"And we can't go home; because they won't receive our IDC, and, therefore, won't lower the shield, and _you_ can't tell me with certainty that the energy shield will let us through?" Sheppard asked, glaring death at the astrophysicist in front of him.

"Yes! How many times do I have to explain it?!"

"But my bullets, from my gun, will, in fact hurt you, because it's out of phase with us, right?"

"Oh now that's just—"

"That's not helping, Colonel," Teyla chided him. "I want to get home to Kanaan and Torren as much as you want to get back. But we need to let Doctor McKay come up with a solution; as he always does."

"See? There, _she_ understands," McKay said.

"Just fix it, Rodney!" Sheppard shouted, storming out of the Jumper.

~o~o~o~

 _Thursday, October 31_ _st_ _, 2013_

 _M9B-309, Pegasus Galaxy_

.

Colonel Lorne stood just outside a decrepit building on this little planet where Sheppard and his team had last been reported to be exploring wondering just what the hell the Colonel had gotten himself into now. They were now seven hours overdue for their check-in, and so far all they had found was a handful of footprints. Doctor Zalenka couldn't even tell if McKay had actually managed to do anything with the hulking, ancient machine they'd found in the building. But evidence said likely not, considering it was totally burnt out. There was no telling how many millennia since anyone had set foot on this planet. There was even an impression in the ground just outside the building where the Jumper had been parked.

This not being the first time Colonel Sheppard had and his team disappeared while visiting a planet, Lorne had to consider foul play…again. But, according to Zalenka, McKay had discovered this planet while perusing the Ancient equivalent of a thumb drive Doctor Beckett had dug up months ago. A setup that elaborate would have required some manpower. And, so far, the only evidence of anyone they'd found here was Sheppard's team. To make things even more fun, the only address in the DHD crystal was Atlantis' current location.

Lorne knew there had been three dial-ins yesterday with no communication, and the shield had been up the whole time for all three. There was something here. Some clue about Sheppard's team and their whereabouts that he and Zalenka just couldn't grasp.

"Doctor Zalenka, did you figure out what those energy fluctuations were?"

"No, Colonel. They're still here, and they move around periodically. But I can't pin them down. Most of them are very weak. There's one stationary one that is considerably stronger, but it is still unexplainable."

 _"Do something, Rodney!" Sheppard shouted, standing right in front of Colonel Lorne._

 _"Do what, John? Wave my hands and say 'boo'? We're not even ghosts to them!"_

 _"There's no way for you to get their attention?" Teyla asked, her frustration clear in her tense expression._

 _"Zalenka said he could detect energy readings," Ronon pointed out. "Is that us?"_

 _"I don't know! Maybe…" Rodney said, working furiously on his tablet._

Heaving a sigh, Colonel Lorne gave up. There was nothing more they could do here.

"Pack it up, guys. We're headed back to Atlantis in ten," he called to his team.

Not a one of them looked happy as they carried the equipment back to the Jumper.

 _"Hurry up! Get in!" Sheppard shouted racing back to their Jumper. "I've got an idea!"_

~o~o~o~

In the gate room on Atlantis, they watched Colonel Lorne's Jumper head toward the Jumper Bay. Meanwhile, half a dozen techs were going over the readings from the gate. According to the gate, a second…something…had come through. Some kind of indefinable energy reading had come through the gate reading as a solid object, but there was nothing there.

~o~o~o~

Shaking himself thoroughly, Sheppard stared through the Jumper's view screen at the clearly concerned techs. "That was…disturbing," he said, shaking off the image of having been inside Colonel Lorne as the two Jumpers overlapped.

"You're telling me," McKay said, pale and shaken. "That was way closer to Zalenka than I ever wanted to be."

Ronon and Teyla shared a look from the back of the Jumper where they had been standing with Lorne's team seated on either side of them on the benches. Suddenly they were very glad they hadn't chosen to sit down.

Seeing Lorne's Jumper already gone to the Jumper Bay, Sheppard bit back a curse. Well, if he was going to have to get used to moving through things, might as well start now. To his surprise, however, the doors actually opened for him and Atlantis took over the Jumper parking like normal. This even had Rodney staring wide-eyed.

"Atlantis knows we're here!" McKay finally spluttered, grabbing his tablet and running for the back as the Jumper was being parked and reconnected to the city's power grid for recharging.

~o~o~o~

 _"Doctor Banks to Colonel Lorne."_

Just exiting the Jumper, Lorne keyed on his radio. "This is Lorne, go ahead."

 _"Sir, you need to come to the gate room. We've got some readings you're going to need to see."_

"On my way. Lorne out."

Handing off his tac vest and P90, Lorne headed for the control room. There he found the next thing to chaos as all the techs were going over the data with nearly panicked expressions.

"What's up, Amelia?"

"Colonel, something came through the gate…behind you…sort of."

"What?"

"Basically, we got an energy reading like something came through the gate, even while your Jumper was still sitting in the gate room. Then the gate shut down. Your Jumper was already through the doors and headed for the Bay. But then the doors opened again, like there was a second Jumper."

"What?" Lorne repeated, incredulously.

"That's not all," one of the other techs called. "Check this out."

He turned around his laptop to show Atlantis giving the signal that another Jumper—the one Colonel Sheppard had disappeared with—was just docking with the power port in its original slot.

"What the hell?" Lorne said. Turning on his radio, "Colonel Lorne for Doctor Zalenka."

"This is Doctor Zalenka, Colonel."

"Doc, are you still in the Jumper Bay?"

"Yes."

"Can you check Jumper Five space for me and see what's going on."

"Certainly, Colonel. Why?"

"Atlantis says a Jumper just parked there. Colonel Sheppard's Jumper, actually."

"What?"

"That's what I said."

"There's nothing there, Colonel."

"You're sure?"

"Positive. The space is empty. I'm standing in it."

"Hang on a second, Doc." Lorne turned to the gate techs. "Do the city sensors say something is actually charging from that port, or just connected?"

"Just connected. There's no power flow."

"Doc, do you see something connected to the recharging port?"

"Nothing."

"Thanks, Doc. Lorne out." Turning to the gate techs, he asked, "Any ideas?"

"Ghosts?" one of the younger ones suggested, earning a dirty look from Amelia. Her husband was one of the men missing, after all. "What? It's Halloween!"

"Very funny, Nick," Amelia said scathingly. "Now get back to work on a real explanation."

Colonel Lorne was only half paying attention to this. There was something here he was missing. Just like on the planet, he knew there was more going on than he could make out. Somehow this tied to Colonel Sheppard's disappearance. He was absolutely certain, but he just couldn't put it together. Feeling his head throbbing slightly from the lack of sleep, Lorne shook his head.

"Keep me updated on any further anomalies."

"Yes, sir."

Shaking off the day and knowing what kind of mess he was in for when he got up in a few hours, Lorne headed off to get a couple hours of sleep before the rest of the nightmare could settle in.

~o~o~o~

 _Friday, November 1_ _st_ _, 2013_

 _Atlantis, M3G-631, Pegasus Galaxy_

.

"No, John!" Rodney shouted back at his friend and team leader. "What I'm saying is that the Jumper can't recharge. We have a limited amount of power that is dwindling steadily. What I'm saying is that we have no food, no water, no means of communication, and no way to bring ourselves back in phase without going back to that planet. Our only chance at learning anything that might help us would be to ask the people who created it."

Sheppard, sitting on one of the benches in the back of the Jumper let his head fall into his hands. For the fifth time since this whole mess started he found himself on the edge of strangling the damn scientist.

"Fine," he said, scrubbing his face. "You all stay here. Maybe—"

"What? No, no, no, no, no. You have no _idea_ what we're dealing with," McKay interrupted. "I'm the only one that can understand any of this."

"What if I have them download it to your tablet?"

"That's _if_ you can even get through the shield!"

"That's what I'm saying, Rodney. If anyone's going to risk being squashed on a gate shield, it's gonna be me!"

"What the hell gives you the right—"

"Why don't we just test it, first?"

Obviously lack of sleep, lack of food, stress, and general frustration had fried both their brains. The twin looks Ronon got for his suggestion were just shy of open face palms.

"I'm just sayin'," Ronon added, not understanding their looks.

"Wait for the next dial-in," McKay started.

"And maybe just stick my hand in it," Sheppard finished.

"That could work," McKay agreed.

"Good," Teyla said, standing up to exit the Jumper. "Now that that's settled. Be sure to bring back plenty of supplies, if you go. For now, I'm going to visit Torren."

Feeling sheepish over their bickering, Sheppard and McKay headed to the gate room. This being the first time they'd really left the Jumper since they had been so focused on trying to find a way to get a message to Atlantis, they finally had a chance to have a little fun. For a while they entertained themselves with childish poses and wise cracks about everyone in the gate room.

Finally their chance came. The moment the gate shield went up, Sheppard shoved Rodney aside and ran up to stick his arm in. Strangely, he felt nothing. Not even the tingle of the event horizon. But, on the bright side, it went right through and back again.

"It worked!" Rodney said, stepping up beside him.

Just then the shield dropped and a team came through the event horizon. One walked right through Sheppard.

"That is _so_ disturbing," John said, shaking himself thoroughly.

"Come on. Let's get the Jumper. I'm starving."

~o~o~o~

"Colonel Lorne. Sir, you better get out here," Lorne heard the call on his radio.

Exiting the office for the balcony overlooking the gate, he was just in time to see the gate activate. One of the techs turned on the shield the instant the event horizon formed. The rest of them were working furiously on the different consoles and laptops.

"What's going on?" Lorne called, coming down the steps.

"We don't know. The Jumper Bay doors opened, then the gate activated. The shield is up, but…"

"Something just went through!" another tech practically squealed.

"What the hell!" another one said. "The shield was up the whole time!"

Then the gate shut down.

Hands on his hips, Colonel Lorne eyed the gate. He had a sick feeling he wasn't going to like the answer, but he had to know.

"What was the gate address?"

"It's M Nine B Three Oh Nine," the wide-eyed tech replied.

"Is there still a Jumper showing in slot five?"

Chuck checked his laptop. "No, sir. How did you know?"

Lorne's blue eyes took on a distant look as he began to consider the possibilities. But still nothing made sense. "Damn," he muttered, scrubbing his face. He hadn't had nearly enough sleep for this. Shaking his head he turned back toward his office. "Inform Doctor Zalenka. Have him check it out. Keep me updated. I'll be in the office."

"Yes, sir."

~o~o~o~

 _Sunday, November 3_ _rd_ _, 2013_

 _Atlantis, M3G-631, Pegasus Galaxy_

.

"Colonel Lorne to the gate room!"

Hearing the radio call, Lorne dropped his tray of food and took off at a flat run. By the time he got there the gate was just shutting down with the shield still up. Moments later the Jumper Bay doors opened. Now he was certain. The sick feeling in the pit of his stomach wasn't just a hunch.

"I'm telling you. It's the ghosts of Colonel Sheppard and his team!" one nearly hysterical tech was telling the others.

"Beldon, if you don't shut the hell up…"

"Let me guess, the gate activated, the sensors say something came through, with the shield up, and now there's a Jumper docking in slot five?" Lorne said, coming up to the techs.

"Yes, sir."

"Damn," Lorne muttered turning on his radio. "Colonel Lorne for Doctor Zalenka."

"Zalenka here. Go ahead, Colonel."

"Grab some equipment and meet me in the Jumper Bay."

"I'll be there in ten minutes. Zalenka out."

"What do you think it is, sir?"

Lorne turned back to the techs. He'd heard the rumors floating around the city. The ghosts of Sheppard and his team now roamed the halls. They hopped back and forth through the gate trying to find their bodies. Every bizarre occurrence in the city was now blamed on them. Dead or alive, the Colonel was still a walking damned curse.

Finally Lorne sighed. "I'll let you know when _I_ know something. Keep me posted on gate activity."

~o~o~o~

Fifteen minutes later Sheppard and Ronon were unloading the Jumper. They had brought back enough supplies to last two months, they thought. And it better last, or they were going to be in real trouble. McKay had finally put down his tablet and joined them in unloading the Jumper when they watched Lorne and Zalenka approaching.

"Yes, Colonel. The system says there's a Jumper there, but, as you can see—"

 _Sheppard danced out of the way as Zalenka walked right into and through the stacks of supplies in what, to them, was the back of a solid Jumper._

 _"That is so creepy," McKay said, watching._

"—there's nothing here. See? There's the charging port, and nothing!"

"I get that, Doctor. But I'm telling you, there _is_ something here," Lorne said, clearly frustrated. "Check the readings."

Muttering in Czech, Zalenka turned his attention to his tablet. "I've heard the rumors, too, Colonel. They're just glitches, malfunctions. There's no such thing as ghosts; even if Rodney is a pain in a ass enough to haunt me for all eternity."

"I'm well aware, Doc. But that's not what—" The look of surprise on Zalenka's face silenced whatever he was about to say. "What is it, Radek?"

"There's energy readings…"

 _"That's it, Rodney! They're detecting the energy, again!" Sheppard practically shouted, watching Zalenka step forward out of the Jumper and turn around to face it. "Do something! We've got to get his attention!"_

 _"Like what?!"_

 _"I don't know! Just_ do _something!"_

"It's the same energy readings from M Nine B Three Zero Nine…"

"What are you saying, Radek?" Lorne pushed, his expression tense.

"I don't know. But…There! There's a weaker one!" he said, excitedly.

 _Sheppard was frantically waving his hands in front of Zalenka. "Hey! I think he's picking it up. Stand on his left, Ronon!"_

"And there's another one," Zalenka muttered, turning to his left.

"But what is it?" Lorne asked, now openly frustrated.

"I don't know!" Zalenka snapped. "But they're moving."

Lorne put his hands on his hips and sighed as he tilted his head back toward the ceiling visibly trying not to strangle the scientist. "Okay, let's put it together. Sheppard and his team go missing. On the same planet they went missing on, we start picking up moving energy readings that are almost too faint to detect, and then one stationary that is…how big would you say?"

"About the size of a Jumper," Zalenka said, catching on.

"Right. Then the gate techs say something came through with us. Atlantis says there's a Jumper here. The next day the gate activates again and Atlantis says there's something there, and now nothing in slot five. Two days after that, the gate says something came through—with the shield still up—and now Atlantis says there's a Jumper parked here. No Jumper, but an anomalous energy that's still extremely faint, but definitely detectible."

"Yes…" Zalenka agreed, his mind clearly working frantically.

 _"Thank you, Captain Obvious! Now will you_ please _just—"_

 _"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" Sheppard said frantically, cutting the scientist off._

 _"No! I will not just 'shut up'! Zalenka is a moron! Lorne is smarter than—"_

 _"Shut up," Ronon said, putting a hand over Rodney's mouth and glaring dangerously._

"—can't be certain, but it appears the energy readings are getting weaker."

Lorne scrubbed his face, his exhaustion evident as he ran his hands through his hair in frustration. "It ties together, somehow. You're the scientist. You tell me."

Doctor Zalenka's frustration was obvious. "I don't know. I'll set up some equipment, and see what we can detect. I'll let you know if we find anything."

"That's all I ask, Doc. Thanks."

Turning Lorne started to walk away.

"Colonel?"

Lorne turned around to see Zalenka wrestling with whatever it was he wanted to ask. Finally he asked in a soft voice, "Do you really believe they're alive?"

Lorne smiled reassuringly. "Yeah, Doc. I do. I just hope whatever you find will answer some questions about how to get them back."

Radek nodded and turned his attention back to the tablet.

~o~o~o~

 _Wednesday, November 13_ _th_ _, 2013_

 _Atlantis, M3G-631, Pegasus Galaxy_

.

Fifteen days since they'd gone out of phase with the rest of the universe and McKay still hadn't found a solution. He practically lived with the tablet in his hands in the back of the Jumper. Ronon had taken to shadowing Amelia, and Teyla was pretty much staying in her quarters with Torren and Kanaan. With little else to do, Sheppard hung around the Jumper with McKay, who, on occasion, would take a break to wander off and see his own wife and child. So, no, there was no need to prod the scientist, or even push him into working. He was as desperate as the others to figure it out.

"Son of a bitch!" Rodney hissed as sparks flew from the console he'd attached to his tablet.

Seeing the thin line of smoke coming from the console, he threw down his tablet and rubbed his eyes. He'd barely slept in the last two weeks knowing that the longer he took the less power they would have.

"What's up, Rodney?" Sheppard asked.

"Nothing, that's what's up. Not a fucking thing."

Now Sheppard knew the man was in sorry shape. "Why don't you take a break? I'm sure Jennifer—"

"Because I've gotten nowhere! I've tried subspace, every communication frequency ever known, Morse code, and now even smoke signals! I can't get a message to them, and we're running out of time!"

"You think I don't know that?"

"Of course you do," Rodney muttered bitterly. "You're going to starve to death along with us, unless I figure something out."

"Not gonna happen."

"Oh right, because you'll shoot me if I don't fix what I've done. That's real helpful, Colonel."

"That's not what I meant, Rodney."

"Then what, John? What grand, heroic idea do you have this time to save our asses?"

Heaving a tired sigh, Sheppard sat on the opposite bench. "That's your department."

"That's right. How could I have forgotten? Silly me."

"Look, no one is blaming you, Rodney. But you're the only one that can help us, now."

"That's just it. I _can't_ do anything! I'm not the McGyver of quantum physics, and the tools I _can_ actually use aren't the ones I need. The Jumper's nearly out of power, and the one person in the whole universe that can help us right now is a galaxy away. I told you, Colonel Carter was working with phase technology. She's the only one that can do anything to help us. But they're never going to figure that out if I don't find a way to send them a message!"

McKay's misery was complete. He buried his face in his hands. Sheppard knew the man was working himself to death trying to find a solution, or a way to get a message through. Feeling for the man, he moved over to sit beside the scientist and nudged his shoulder.

"Take a break."

"I can't. I need—"

"Rodney, it's _not_ your fault. You had no idea what that machine was, how it worked, or even what turned it on."

"Which is why I shouldn't have messed with the damn thing!"

"That's not what I'm getting at. What I'm saying is that no matter what happens, it's not your fault. Sitting here blaming yourself isn't going to help. You're tired, and you need a break. If you don't, you might miss the one thing that can make a difference here."

Heaving a sigh, McKay leaned back. "I miss them."

"I know you do, buddy. We'll figure this out. Go see them. I'll power down the Jumper and we'll get some sleep tonight. We can work on it again tomorrow."

Still staring at the ceiling Rodney said, "I still can't believe it. You know?"

"Believe what?"

"My luck. Our luck. Whatever. I'm married to a gorgeous, intelligent woman. I have a beautiful daughter. We're back in the Pegasus Galaxy where we belong. And now this."

"Stop it, McKay. We're going to figure this out."

"Why didn't they just keep records? Even if they never continued the research. Why couldn't they have just kept some damn records so we would have something to go off of?"

"You heard them, Rodney. They couldn't risk some crazy scientist taking their planet out of phase and exposing it to the Wraith. Making it forbidden research and destroying all records was the safest plan. Now the only people who know about them being out of phase is their government. And they're safe that way. It's worked for thirteen thousand years. You gotta give them credit for that much, at least."

"But if I just knew the frequencies…"

"Well, what—"

"Before you ask, no. I don't. And it's not like I can just Google the answer. I know the heart is one to two point five hertz. I know the neural oscillations range from one to seventy hertz. Earth is seven point eight three hertz. The Sun is five point nine six four gigahertz. The…oh my god…"

"What?"

"The Atlantis intranet," Rodney said, his voice distant as his mind obviously raced.

"What about it?" Sheppard finally prompted after a few seconds.

Rodney closed his eyes and banged his head. "I just…ugh. I can't think, anymore."

Heaving a sigh, Sheppard put an arm around his shoulders and practically picked him up. "That's enough. Go see Jennifer and Ellie."

Clearly dead on his feet, Rodney allowed himself to be led out of the Jumper. "Why do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Call her by her nickname? You never use Elizabeth."

"I don't know. Just seems right."

"I still miss her, too."

There was no need to elaborate. They all missed Weir. The guilt over that would never go away. But, for now, Sheppard had a half-dead scientist on his hands to deal with. One thing at a time. Since the man seemed to have no willpower of his own, he took McKay to his quarters and shoved him through the door. Knowing Ronon was with Amelia and Teyla was with Kanaan, Sheppard wandered back to the Jumper. Setting up a blanket and pillow, he laid out on a bench and drifted off.

~o~o~o~

 _Friday, November 15_ _th_ _, 2013_

 _Atlantis, M3G-631, Pegasus Galaxy_

.

"That's it! I got it!" Rodney shouted from inside the Jumper.

Sheppard came running back to the back of the Jumper nearly running into McKay on his way out. Before they could say anything else, though, the Jumper powered down. That was it. It was dead now.

"What happened?"

"The Jumpers out of power," Rodney explained offhandedly, still way too excited about whatever was on his tablet. "But I did it. I got a message through to Zalenka."

"How?"

"I managed to synchronize the frequency of my tablet to Zalenka's computer. I'll explain later. You head to the gate room. I'm headed to Zalenka's lab. We should be seeing the results any second."

"What am I looking for?"

"You'll see!" Rodney shouted over his shoulder, heading out of the Jumper Bay at a flat run.

~o~o~o~

"And you two geniuses thought it would be a good idea to—"

Colonel Lorne's dressing down of the two Lieutenants in his office was cut off as a wide-eyed, frantic Doctor Zalenka practically broke down the glass door in his rush to get in.

"Colonel! You were right! They're here!"

"Dismissed!" he snapped at the two Lieutenants.

"What the hell are you talking about, Radek? You said the readings were fading and then two disappeared completely."

"He did it!" Zalenka said, setting his laptop on the desk facing Lorne.

Seeing the message appearing as a network computer to computer alert with no source, Lorne sat down in his chair with a breathless gasp.

 _Radek, Lorne is right. We're here. We're out of phase. Don't touch the machine on M9B-309, or the same will happen to you. Contact Colonel Carter. She can help. We're out of power. There will be no more messages, but WE ARE HERE._

"The son of a bitch. He did it," Lorne practically whispered, totally unaware of the relieved smile.

"Yes! We need to dial Earth."

"I'm on it, Doc. Thanks!" Lorne threw over his shoulder as he launched himself out of his chair and out of the office.

 _"Damn! I will never get used that," Sheppard said, as Lorne ran right through him._

 _"Now that they know, you won't have to," McKay piped up happily right behind him. "Colonel Carter will have us back in phase in no time."_

 _A second later he gave a shudder nearly identical to Sheppard's when Zalenka walked right through him._

 _"Ugh!"_

 _"See what I mean?" Sheppard asked, smugly. "Come on. Let's go see what the SGC says."_

~o~o~o~

 _Thursday, December 12_ _th_ _, 2013_

 _M9B-309, Pegasus Galaxy_

 _._

"Well, now that I know what I'm looking at, Colonel, there's no mistake," Colonel Carter said via video through the gate. "This thing is massive. It extends well underground. It easy has enough geothermal energy to take a whole planet out of phase. But it looks like one component burnt out, just like Doctor Zalenka says. Whatever caused the short, fried half the circuit boards, so to speak. My guess is it created a localized phase field. Anything not anchored this planet—moon, rather—went out of phase. It's the same frequency as the main planet in this lunar system. So I should be able to determine a frequency."

 _"So you can bring them back?"_ Lorne asked.

"Yes…"

 _"I'm sensing a 'but' here, Colonel."_

Carter shook her head. "This technology is thirteen thousand years old. Aside from the question of whether or not we have the right to expose these people to the threat of the Wraith by bringing them back into phase with the rest of our universe, there's no telling what else may happen. It would be safer for me to try to recreate the technology than to work with what's here."

 _"But it is possible?"_

"Yes."

 _"Then I don't see the problem, ma'am."_

Carter sighed. "If I'm successful in duplicating the technology with the information I managed to download, this could be a big risk for Atlantis. I can't do this in the city, Colonel Lorne. If I'm wrong, the whole city, maybe even the entire planet, could be taken out of phase with no way back."

 _"I find that hard to believe, knowing you,"_ Lorne told her with a grin.

Carter felt herself returning his grin. "I appreciate your confidence. But I was nowhere near perfecting this technology even when I worked on it with at SGC, and this is way ahead of anything I've worked with."

 _"What about the Alpha Site?"_

Colonel Carter considered this, chewing her lip for a moment. "Yes, I think that would work. I can have the Daedalus transport anything too big to fit through the gate."

 _"Sounds like a plan, Colonel."_

"Just one more thing," Carter said, her expression clearly worried. "Did they say anything about supplies?"

 _"No, why?"_

Carter sighed heavily. "Never mind. Hopefully I'll have this figured out in a few days."

 _"I'm sure you will, ma'am,"_ he told her with another confident smile.

"Thanks. Colonel Carter out."

~o~o~o~

With that the gate shut down. Lorne continued to stare at the gate long after it had shut down. The sick feeling in the pit of his stomach was back. He just hoped that Carter's question about supplies hadn't meant what he thought it meant. If it did, then their time was running out faster than even he thought.

~o~o~o~

 _Monday, December 23_ _rd_ _, 2013_

 _Alpha Site, M7V-278, Pegasus Galaxy_

 _._

With a muttered curse, Colonel Carter slammed her fist onto the table. Nothing was working. She'd been at this for eleven days and she just couldn't duplicate the technology. There was nothing Ancient, human, Goa'uld, Asgard, or Ori that she could even compare it to. It was so completely alien that she just couldn't put it together with the technology and equipment she had. Even on a small scale, cobbled together with parts from five different types of technology and some she just made up herself along the way, she couldn't get it to work.

In her most recent tests, the objects she'd tested had flown apart or been disintegrated on a sub-atomic level due to the harmonic frequencies involved. She'd even dredged up all her old equipment and attempted to use it. But without being able to pin down a way to reverse the phase changes done by the alien equipment, she was getting nowhere.

Slouching down in her chair and burying her face in her hands, Carter took several deep, calming breaths. Beside her, Doctor Zalenka patted her on the shoulder.

"Get some rest, we can try again tomorrow," he told her.

"What if they don't have tomorrow? What if they don't have _today?"_ she asked. "For all we know they're starving to death or dying of dehydration and there's nothing we can do."

"I told you, the energy readings in the city show four faint signatures. All of them move around, but are found most frequently in their own quarters. They're still alive, Colonel."

Taking one more deep breath, Carter stood up. Resigned to giving more bad news to Colonel Lorne, she headed toward the gate. Standing in front of the web cam, she tried to make herself presentable, knowing she was a mess. As the gate activated and the event horizon settled into its usual, watery rippling she felt something tickle the back of her mind.

 _"Colonel Carter? Are you alright?"_ she heard Lorne ask. Obviously he'd been trying to get her attention for a while.

"Colonel Lorne…I…ninety to one hundred ten terahertz…"

 _"Excuse me?"_

"My god…it was right in front of me the whole time…"

 _"Ma'am?"_

"Hold on, Colonel," she told the web cam. She turned and stuck her head out the door, "Doctor Zalenka!" She waited just long enough to see Radek heading her way. Then she turned back to the web cam and Colonel Lorne.

"Sorry, Colonel Lorne. But I've got the answer."

 _"That's great news, Colonel!"_ he smiled brightly.

"I need to take the Atlantis gate offline."

 _"Understood. I'll need to alert all off world teams. How long?"_

"I don't know, exactly. I'll explain it when I get there. Give me an hour to pack up some equipment. I'll need to do this from Atlantis."

 _"Roger that. Colonel Lorne out."_

"What is it, Colonel Carter?" Radek said, his eyes wide as she grabbed him frantically by the arms.

With an excited expression, she said, "I've got it! We can use the gates! Come on. Help me pack up. I'll explain later."

~o~o~o~

 _Wednesday, December 25_ _th_ _, 2013_

 _Atlantis, M3G-631, Pegasus Galaxy_

.

It was just a little after ten in the morning on Christmas Day when Colonel Lorne, Colonel Carter, and the family members of the missing team were all waiting breathlessly in the gate room. Colonel Sheppard's team had been "missing" for fifty-seven days. They had no idea what condition they had been in, or would be in, when this worked. They all knew, thanks to Zalenka, that the four teammates had been seen "haunting" the city this entire time; mostly around their families' quarters. This morning Colonel Lorne had gone to each location explaining what they were planning on doing in the hopes that they were listening.

Apparently they had. All four energy signatures were now gathered in front of the gate.

Taking a deep breath to steady her frayed nerves, Colonel Carter said, "Here we go."

They all watched the event horizon form and nothing happen. After a couple of minutes, the gate shut down.

Now they prayed.

Two minutes later the gate activated again. An incoming wormhole. Every person present held their breath waiting to see if anything or anyone would come through. A moment later Jennifer cried as she ran forward with Elizabeth in her arms to almost knock Rodney on his ass. Amelia left her post to launch herself into Ronon's arms. Teyla ducked down to catch Torren as he ran squealing toward her with Kanaan not far behind. Still holding baby Tyre in his arms, Colonel Lorne waited for Amelia to recover from the shock before stepping up and handing him over to Ronon. Turning, he went back up the steps to stand beside Colonel Carter.

"You did good, Colonel. Thank you."

Her eyes locked on Sheppard, Carter smiled. For a moment Sheppard stood back and smiled at his team and their families. They were home. Weaving his way around them, he approached Colonel Lorne and Colonel Carter.

"Welcome back, sir," Lorne said clapping him on the shoulder happily.

"Not like I was ever gone, but yeah. Thanks for holding down the fort," Sheppard said.

"Glad you're not a 'ghost' anymore, sir?" Evan couldn't resist asking.

Sheppard made a face. "I never realized just how superstitious people around here are."

"When you work with what we do, Colonel, I can't say I'm too surprised," Carter added.

"Don't worry, sir. I saved you plenty of paperwork. This report to the SGC is all yours, Colonel," Lorne tossed back with an impish grin. "I'm going to spend Christmas with my wife."

"Speaking of which. I heard a rumor in the mess hall the other day that there's going to be a couple of little Lorne's running around soon."

Lorne laughed. "Must be nice to be invisible."

"It has its perks," Sheppard agreed. "Congratulations, Evan."

"Merry Christmas, John."

"Yes, Merry Christmas, Colonel Sheppard," Carter said shaking his hand, her exhaustion outshone by her happiness.

"Thanks to you, it is, Colonel," Sheppard told her, turning to watch the ongoing reunion below.

Curious as he was how she managed to figure it out and pull it off, even Rodney didn't bother to ask as they turned to leave the gate room. For now, all that mattered was that they were home, they were back in phase with the universe, and they still had Christmas to celebrate.


End file.
